"I Hate Fairyland #6" Comic Review

Written and Illustrated by Skottie YoungColored by Jean-Francois Beaulieu2016, 32 Pages, $3.50Comic released on June 15th, 2016

Review:

Gert has been through quite a bit in the thirty-plus years she's been stranded in Fairyland. Despite being close to forty, she's in the body of a child. She has spent the better part of her stay on a quest looking for a key that will open the door back to her world and free herself of this sugar-filled universe forever. Unfortunately, she's really bad at this, which is why it's taken her so long. Most recently, she's taken out the queen and by local law that makes her the successor. As queen, she can't up and leave, so she's stuck.

That's where we pick up with the latest issue of I Hate Fairyland. The thing about Gert though is that she's also not very good at ruling a kingdom. She's stuck in a massive throne room with nothing else in it aside from her royal seat. The bulk of her day is spent signing documents and decrees. There's no opportunity for her to be an evil queen and wreak havoc in Fairyland. She could sign an act of war to have someone else do it for her, but what's the fun in that?

Click images to enlarge

This issue contains a full year of Gert's reign as queen. We see her doing a lot of local government things such as ribbon cutting and commencement speeches. With Gert, these seemingly mundane events easily turn into bloodbaths followed by a massive explosion. Remember what I said about her being bad at this job? Despite these troubles, no one seems to catch on at first. They keep inviting her to these functions because that's what they expect the queen to do. They instantly regret it when she literally cuts a man in half with a giant pair of scissors before leaving the entire building in ashes.

The montage of unfortunate events is nothing short of amazing. Writer / artist Skottie Young showcases the variety of Fairyland with everyone from snowmen to farm animals to what look like Smurfs. The end result is always the same: Death in increasingly hilarious ways. I think my favorite one is the shot of Gert chowing down on some ribs while a couple anthropomorphic pigs and a cow watch on in horror. She just keeps eating, barbeque sauce all over her face, clueless to the massive social faux pas she's just committed.

Click image to enlarge

There are a couple double-page spreads in this issue that are absolutely breathtaking. The first shows what Gert hopes to do as queen; unleashing hordes of skeleton warriors on her enemies as the land burns around her. The second chronicles the rest of her first year as queen and the rebellions that have risen up and been crushed along the way. Young crams so much into these images, touching upon other areas of Fairyland that I can't wait to see explored further.

Jean-Francois Beaulieu's colors really bring everything together in I Hate Fairyland. I know they just released a coloring book based on this comic, but I can't imagine what this artwork must look like in black-and-white. Every single panel is an explosion of vibrant color that leaps off the page. It helps drive home how sickeningly sweet Fairyland is to the point where you might just get a cavity from flipping through the comic.

I Hate Fairyland is a cornucopia of candy-coated carnage. (Alliteration is fun, kids!) If you've ever suffered through a game of Candyland or wanted to tear the head off a Care Bear, this is the perfect comic for you. Let me leave you with this: Within the first three pages (previewed above), a tiny butterfly teddy bear creature rips the heart out of a monster and displays it to a cheering crowd like some demented version of Gladiator. If that doesn't make you want to buy this comic, nothing will. Also, we can't be friends.

Grades:

James has a 2nd grade reading level and, as a result, only reads books with pictures. Horror is his 5th favorite genre right after romantic comedy and just before silent films. No one knows why he's here, but he won't leave.